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Jenny Banks wears many hats; mum, retail adviser, friend, dispenser and store manager – to name a few. When she was leaving school and looking for her next step, she didn’t think she would end up where she has now, but 17 years later, she can’t picture being anywhere else.
Starting out
Initially, Jenny wanted to become a physical education teacher, and studied a degree in sports science. Throughout her studies, she worked part-time in the pharmacy, starting as a Saturday girl when she was just 16. In 2009, two years after she began at the pharmacy, a trainee dispenser left, prompting Jenny to replace her. She has been at the same pharmacy ever since!
Studying sport and exercise, she says, has helped in her role at the pharmacy when it comes to giving lifestyle advice and recommendations regarding sports injuries, and while she is grateful for everything her degree taught her, she knows that the pharmacy is where she is meant to be. “That is my passion! Helping people has always been my passion,” she says. “My heart is really in the pharmacy.” Even after the pandemic, and having two young boys during this time, Jenny still finds herself happiest when helping the pharmacy’s customers. Her dedication and loyalty to serving the community has certainly paid off, when last year, Jenny, who was the lead dispenser at the time, was offered the position of store manager.
“I always have a smile on my face, and I try to go above and beyond”
Taking the plunge
Despite initial reservations about taking up the role, Jenny took on the position and embraced everything it had to offer, dealing with all the highs and lows that have come her way. “It has been a tricky year in store. The previous manager left and had four weeks’ notice, but broke her arm after one week, and then another member of staff left too,” she recalls. “I was offered the store manager position, and I didn’t know if I was ready, but sometimes life just gives you a push when you need it. It was always something I wanted to do, but this made me take the plunge.” Having previously shadowed the store manager often, Jenny was not unfamiliar with the tasks she would be expected to take up once becoming store manager, which is probably why the store continued to do so well under her leadership. “Jenny was always the perfect person to fill this vacancy and was fully supported by the team. Everyone was delighted when she received confirmation that she would be our new store manager,” says Chloe Kirby, trainee pharmacist also at Boots UK in Darwen. Much of the staff at the pharmacy are long-standing, Jenny commented, making their support exceptionally important to her. This support was especially essential when Jenny first took on the role. “Finding the balance between my job of being a mum and work was quite tricky,” Jenny says. “I never really switch off.” She managed to get through it, she says, by trusting her colleagues, helping her to realise that she did not need to do everything by herself. The whole team works together with their own roles to focus on, allowing each other the capacity to perform.
“That is my passion! Helping people has always been my passion”
The best in the business
The pharmacy was already a very successful branch, as Jenny says: “I wanted to ferment what we had as a brilliant store.” Since she has taken over, it has improved even more so. “The store is already doing well as a business, but since Jenny has become manager, she has made adjustments to the business and has a real passion,” Chloe says. “The pharmacy is thriving, and it is a great place to work. We constantly get great feedback from customers. It is amazing that Jenny’s business still keeps that real community pharmacy feel.” With items growing week on week, the store does 13,000 items a month including retail, blister packs and advanced services, with Jenny steering the ship. “I oversee everything, really,” Jenny says. “Everyone’s safety, training, retail, deliveries and the sales plan. I ensure all the training is up to date, ensuring everyone has the time to complete it, in between all their work.” All this, whilst the pharmacy was going through significant changes to both staff and leadership. “I have managed the team through the drastic changes and the staff have been able to lean on me. I have supported them well through the transition, all whilst being so busy and intense in the store, too,” Jenny commented. “I always have a smile on my face, and I try to go above and beyond. I took on this new role and though I am still muddling through aspects of it, the transition is going well, and we are growing the business, and Boots Darwen has a good, happy feel!”
In Practice